Display and shipping cabinet



Feb. 12, 1935. sc E 1,991,030

DISPLAY AND SHIPPING CABINET v Filed Sept. 20, 1953 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Feb. 12, 1935. -F. SCHIMMEL 1,991,030

DISPLAY AND SHIPPING CABINET Filed se 't. 20, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 /9 g I 1 1 hay 27 02" I k 4 jWJ'Ic/q/m jcfiimmel 23 22 Z 23 y in A7 for0e howl... q

Patented Feb. '12, 1935 p 1 UN T E1) I p E ia- 1mm ".DIsrLAY AND SHIPPINGQRCABINET... Fridolin schilhmer ari a lt,, nm. 1 Application september 20, 1933, jSeria'l No. 690,185

mania (01. 5. 4. 39)? My present invention has for its; object th provision of an extremely "simple and highly 'efliciehfldisplay and shippingcabinet intended for generaluse but especially well adapted for 55 holding packets of flower and vegetable seeds.

It is well known that certain seed companies each season fill cabinets with packets of seeds andship the same to merchants at their various places of business where'the cabinets are opened and the contents thereof displayed-for sale tothe trade. I Cabinets now in general use 'for purpose are objectionable for the reason that they usually rest directly on the fiooriand "it is very difiicult to read the inscriptions on thepackets in. the lower portions of the cabinets and if the cabinets are placed on counters it is just as hard to read the inscriptions in the upper portions of the packets.

. A further objection to the present type of cabinet is that is it difficult to remove the packets from certain portions of the cabinet depending on whether the same is placed on a floor or on a counter.

' The primary objects of this invention is to provide display and shipping cabinets with doors 7 or cover sections that may be used as closures for door openings in the cabinets, when the same are stored or shipped, or that may be used as legs for supporting the cabinets at the desired elevation when the cabinets are positioned to display the contents therein. 1

To the above end, the invention consists of the novel devices and combinations of devices hereinafter described and defined in the claim.

In the accompanying drawings, which illustrate the invention, like characters indicate like parts throughout the several views.

Referring to the drawings:

Fig. 1 is an end'elevation of one form of the improved cabinet with some parts broken away and other parts sectioned;

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the cabinet shown in Fig. 1 with the doors open and positioned to afford supporting legs;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary detail view principally in section showing one means of securing the doors closed;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary detail view with some parts sectioned on the line 4-4 of Fig., 2, on an enlarged scale; i

Fig. 5 is a View corresponding to Fig. 2 but showing another form of the invention; and

Fig. 6 is a view principally in horizontal section taken on the line 6-6 of Fig. 5.

Referring first to the invention shown in Figs.,1 to 4, inclusive, thesame includes aboxlike body made up of a bottom member 7, a topmember $.upw'ardly converging sidememb'ers 9, and parallel end members 10. In each side of ,the body isa door opening 11- which extends the full; distance between the end members and from the underside of the top memher 8 downwardly substantially four-fifths of the entire height jof the body. j n

For each door'opening llisa door 12 which is connected, atits lower edge to the respective side member 9, Ma pair of hingesl3. The

hinges 1 3 conn ect the doorsi12 tojthe body for i "outwardly and downwardly swinging'movements and into positions in which they'are substantially parallel; extend-materially below said body and afford a pair of legs that support thebody in a raisedposition. When the doors 12 are positioned to afford supporting legs they engage the longitudinal edgeportions of 1 the bottom member 7 as stops which limit the inwardly swinging movement of the doors 12 when open. By increasing the distance the bottom member 7 extends outwardly of the side membersv 9 the doors 12, when opened, will be stopped in diverging relation instead ofbeing parallel, as shown. When the doors 12 are closed, they rest on the inclined edge portions of the end members" 10, and the top member 8 extends over the upper edge portions of said doors when closed and covers the same.

Within the body is a vertical partition 14 and on each side of said partition are shelves 15 having dividers 16 which form a plurality of compartments having transparent front members 17 for holding packets of seeds or other articles to be displayed.

When the improved cabinet is-to be shipped, the doors 12 are closed and secured closed by wood screws 18 which extend through holes in said doors and into certain of the upper dividers 16. To open the cabinet'the. same is laid on one of its ends and the doors 12 swung open until stopped by the bottom member 7 and secured in this position by the same screws 18 which extend through other holes in i the doors 12 I and into said bottom member. With the doors ;12 thus secured open the cabinet is lifted into an upright position and supported by said doors which rest on the floor and afiord a pair of legs. In place of wood screws 18, any other suitable means maybe provided for securing the doors 12 either closed or open. Referring now to the invention as shown in Figs. 5 and 6, in this construction the body of the cabinet is of the same general shape as the cabinet shown in Figs. 1 to 4, inclusive, and includes a bottom member 19, a top member 20, and parallel end members 21. The sides of this body are fully open and the doors 22, when closed, completely close the open sides of the cabinet. The vertical edge portions of the end members 21 are in upwardly converging relation and the doors 22 are mounted thereon for vertical sliding movement from closed to open positions in which they extend materially below the bottom of the body and afford legs for supporting the body.

The doors 22 are held for straight line sliding movement by L-shaped brackets 23 on the lower edge portions of the end members 21 and L- shaped brackets 24 on the upper edge portions of the doors 22. When the doors 22 are fully open the brackets 23 engage the brackets 24 as stops and prevent said doors from being detached from the body.

Within the body is an upper shelf 25. Wood screws 26 are provided for holding the doors 22 either closed or open. These screws 26 extend through holes in the doors 22and when the doors 22 are closed they extend into the upper shelf 25 and when the doors 22 are open they extendinto the bottom member 19. The overhangingp'ortions of the top member 20 affords stops for limiting the closing movements of the doors 22. f From the above description it is evident that when the improved cabinet is used for shipping and displaying packets of seeds, it is an extremely simple matter, after the cabinet has been filled, to close the doors and secure the same closed by wood screws or other fastening means. After the doors have been closed the cabinet is ready to be shipped without crating or wrapping and the packets therein can not get out of place. When the filled cabinet reaches its destination it is only necessary to open the doors and secure the same open by the same fastening means used for holding the door closed and, as previously stated, when the doors are open they afford legs for supporting the cabinet at a convenient elevation for displaying the contents therein.

At the end of the season the cabinet is again closed and returned, with the unsold contents, to the point from which it was originally shipped, to be used again the next season.

What I'claim is:-

A seed display and shipping cabinet comprising a bottom member, two relatively high end members, a top member and a pair of side members, the upright edges of each end member being in converging relation from the bottom member to the top member, said top member being materially narrower than the bottom memben the upper horizontal edges'of the side members being materially below the top meniber leaving relatively high door openings between the side members and the top member, all of said members being. rigidly connected, and a pair of doors mounted for movements from positions in which they close thedoor openings to open positions in which they extend below the bottom member, said doors, when open, affording leg-like supports for the cabinet.

. FRIDOLIN SCI-IIMMEL. 

